ABOUT US

Le Dimore del Quartetto supports young string quartets in the early phase of their career and promotes the cultural heritage of historic houses. In collaboration with ADSI – Association of Italian Historic Houses,FAI – Italian National Trust and EHH – European Historic Houses we have created a network of houses willing to host musicians for free for a period of intensive study in preparation for important artistic engagements. In exchange of hospitality, musicians give back a house concert.Quartets are selected by Simone Gramaglia, violist of the Quartetto di Cremona.

The network also aims to lend logistical support to concert societies hiring young music ensembles taking part in the project.

The project has been selected by Fondazione Cariplo among the 20 winners (out of 321 participants from all over Italy) of the “Cultural Innovation”call. Moreover, it has been presented at the Chamber of Deputies, upon invitation of the Cultural Commission, as part of the research on “Best practices of cultural diffusion“.

After many years of experience in public relations (McCann Erikson, B&B Communications), since 2003 she has dedicated herself to the support of educational and cultural nonprofit organizations. Currently she is the vice-president of the Società del Quartetto di Milano, vicepresident of the Foundation for the Cultural and Artistic Activities and Properties of the Church, a board member of the Associazione Piero Farulli (named for the celebrated violist of the Quartetto Italiano) and the Association “Diamo il La” which works to promote music appreciation in preschools and kindergartens, with the aim of using music as a tool of integration. She was the director of development and communications in Italy of the Georg Solti Academy of Bel Canto (a masterclass in collaboration with the Giorgio Cini Foundation in Venice), a member of the Board of Directors of the Music School Foundation of Fiesole and president of the Association of Friends. For the Mission Laique Francaise she was a liaison and director of research in the headquarters of the new French school in Florence, for the development of a new educational approach with a focus on music (2008-2013.) With all these organizations she has tirelessly sought to support the development of projects dedicated to music, young people and culture, continuously creating synergy between diverse partners, raising funds and implementing marketing strategies.She also participated in a training program dedicated to women board members of the aforementioned Italian organizations, promoted by Valore D (In The Boardroom) and directed by Egon Zehnder and the law offices of Linklaters.

Gaddo Della Gherardesca, aged 66, a native of Florence, belongs to one of the oldest families in Europe, whose written history stretches back to the year 754. He began his studies in Florence, then at age 15 enrolled in the Morosini Naval Academy in Venice, where he completed his high school diploma in classical studies. In 1968 he enrolled in Bocconi University in Milan. He performed his military service as a naval officer and after spending a long period of his life traveling, in particular in Asia and South America aside from across Europe, he began his professional career at Ciba Geigy, a Swiss chemicals multinational, where he became the youngest director of the Italian branch. After moving to Rhone Poulenc, he ended his career in 1987 as Marketing Manager for Italy. Since then he has been involved with advertising agencies, in particular serving as vice president of PRS, one of the companies which has shown the greatest growth over the past ten years in television, satellite, radio and internet markets.Della Gherardesca is a member of the governing board of the Federation of Advertising Agencies, President of the Biserno Estate (a highly prestigious vineyard manor); as well as President of the Association of Italian Historic Houses. He works in the administration and development of his family’s estates in Maremma on the coast of Tuscany, directs an event and communication company for high-level clients, serves as president of a foundation dedicated to the conservation of cultural tradition in various fields, and supports the activities of Ambiente Milano and the Strozzi Foundation. His passions include skiing, hunting, nature and traveling.

Violist of the Quartetto di Cremona, Simone Gramaglia is considered one of the best Italian violists of the modern era.During his career, Simone has collaborated with such artists as Antonio Meneses, Lynn Harrel, Lawrence Dutton (Emerson String Quartet), Angela Hewitt, Bella Davidovich, Cho Liang Lin, Lilya Zilberstein, and Bruno Giuranna. He has performed at many of the world’s most prestigious concert halls including Lincoln Centre in New York, the Konzerthaus in Berlin, Wigmore Hall in London, Accademia di Santa Cecilia in Rome, NCPA in Beijing, Salle Gaveau in Paris, and Teatro Colon in Buenos Aires.As a soloist Simone regularly performs with numerous orchestras and pianists and frequently collaborates with the Italian guitarist Luigi Attademo. Both his chamber and solo repertoire includes works from the Classical and Romantic period, as well as 20th century composers, with special attention given to rarely-performed and contemporary Italian composers.As a soloist and with the quartet he has recorded for Decca, Brilliant and Genuni. His concerts have been broadcast worldwide.Since 2011, he has been String Quartet Professor at the Walter Stauffer Academy in Cremona. With the Quartetto di Cremona he also gives masterclasses in Europe, Asia and the USA. Simone is a member of the European Chamber Music Academy, a member of the European Chamber Music Teachers Association and an ambassador of the worldwide “Friends of Stradivari” project.

In 2006 Camilla Torna founded the graphic design studio ICASTIC, which specializes in visualizations. She is director of the MFA program in Communication Design at SACI College of Art and Design in Florence. Creator and curator of the Visualizing Time project, an online collection of images on the perception of the passing of time, which was featured in the interdisciplinary conference “Archetime” in New York and the book Infinite Instances curated by Olga Ast.A background of studies in Graphic Design and Art History at the University of Florence, and years of working experience in the United States, Austria and Italy in the field of visual identity and editorial activities, have led her to her current specialization as a strategic project manager for the development of metaphorical visualizations for companies, universities, cultural institutions, professional coaches and trainers. She also acts as a visualizer during meetings and conferences, a new key figure that creates a product and a process at the same time.

Alice Bovone earned a diploma in Piano from Conservatorio Vivaldi in Alessandria (Piedmont), her hometown, in 2012. She continued playing and teaching children while studying Management for the Arts at Bocconi University in Milan and at Southern Methodist University in Dallas, Texas. Passionate and curious about every form of art, Alice coordinates Le Dimore del Quartetto since January 2017. She dreams of living and working in Italy in her future, to help her wonderful country promote the precious cultural heritage that makes it unique all over the world.

Ottavia Semerari studied Political Economics at La Sapienza University of Rome and Humboldt Universitaet in Berlin. She continued her studies at Bocconi University of Milan specializing in Economics and Management for the arts.She has worked for the WeArt Project, handling communications and the development of crowdfunding campaigns for artistic endeavors. Ottavia is interested in the promotion of cultural heritage through projects that create innovative synergies between the arts and their locations.

Chiara Fabbris attends the last year of the course “Economics and Management for Arts, Culture and Communication” at the Bocconi University, in Milan. She loves travelling, discovering the beauties of our world and singing. She has always been keen on music of any genre, and what fascinates her the most is the emotions conveyed by an artist in connection with his/her art. Chiara’s wish is that of letting more and more people rediscover the beauties of the arts and of our culture, through the creation and promotion of cultural projects.

Ended the studies of Flute at the Conservatory of Music, Alessandra Origani graduates in Economics and Management of Arts and Cultural Activities at Ca’ Foscari University (Venice). She made her first working experience at the Mantova Chamber Music Festival for three years. She won a Scholarship for the first Generazione Cultura project held by MIBACT at the Luiss Business School (Rome) thanks to which she had the opportunity to work in the Artistic Direction of the Teatro Comunale di Bologna. Her passion for Music leads her to continue her studies in Musicology at the Pavia University where she’s now attending the last year of master.